Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1887-05-11
AN AWFUL DEED.


AN AWFUL DEED.
The Details of the Donble Murder In
Hancock.
SpCcidI Telegram 10 the RegisteT.
STEURENvILLE, O., May 10.-News OF
one of the bloodiest crimes ever perpetra-
ted in the vicinity Of this city reached here
from the little village of Holidays Cove,
Hancock county, about twelve O'Clock to-
day. This crime was the deliberate and
unprovoked murder of two women, Mrs.
Luzella McWha, aged about seventy years,
and her daughter, Mrs Eliza Baker, aged
ahout forty.hve. Soon after the news OF
the crime reached here, REGISTER repre-
sentative crossed the river and drove to
the scene OF the murder passing upon the
way scores OF citizens of the surrounding
country and residents OF this city, all
bent upon visiting the locality
THE SCENE OF THE CRIME.
The house in which the crime WAS COM
mitted is the residence OF Mr.. Van Is.
Baker It is frame two stories high,
with porch in front, and stands upon a
hiyh bank Mt the extreme west end OF the
little town, Just where the road leading to
New Cumberland begins The adjoining
house on the south is a brick school house.
The dwelling contains six rooms, and Is a
coy and well-appOinted home. The room
where the murders were committed, and
where the dead bodies of the two women
were found, is designated ~ sit
ting room, hut it was also
u,ed by Mrs. McWha, the
mother of Mrs. Baker, as her bed room.
The bodies OF the murdered women were
living on the floor of this apartment. Mrs.
NIeWha was lying on her back, and her
daughter, Mrs. Baker, lay partly across
the corpse Of her mother. Close beside
the bodies were found an axe, and an iron
ear bolt, stained with blood, these being
evidently, the weapons with which the
victims had been killed. The marks,
which were upon the heads of the victims,
seemed to have been inflicted with the
holt, but the presence OF the axe, and the
act that one OF the victims had three long
and sharp cuts upon her head, inclined
many who viewed the bodies, To the Opln-
ION that the axe was also used, although 1t
showed no traces of the bloody baptism to
which it had possibly been subjected.
THE HUSBANDS STORY.
Van B. Baker, the husband of the
Younger victim, is a tall, iine-lOoking man,
with black hair and whiskerS. The muir
dered woman is his second wife. leSter-
day evening about four o'clock he lett the
Cove and went to Cross Creek village,
Washington county, Pa, TO see his father
aud returned this morning about nine.
He SAYS that he went back Of the house,
and finding the door locked, mt first sup
posed that his wife and her mother had
zone out visiting, but after forcing his way
inside he found the bodies lying on
the floor of the sitting room. lie
Immediately gave the alarm. lie
also states that yesterday evening
three men, who claimed that they came
over from Steubenville to start boarding
tent for railroad men, rented \ lot IN the
rear of the house from his mOther-ln-law,
who owned the property, for the purpose
of erecting the boarding tent thereon, the
consideration being ten dollars. They gave
her a fifty dollar bill. In making change
the old lady displayed quite large sum
ot money she had IN her possession. lie
didn't know the names of the men. Baker
also said that $3.50 in money belonging to
him had been taken, but whether any OF
his mother er-in-law's cash was gone or not
he was unable 10 say, rs no examination
of her effects had been made.
The parlor of the house, which Is also
the front room and is separated from the
sitting room by a short hall, aS well as
the room where the bodies were found,
was in considerable confusion, articles
having been pulled out of the cupboard
and other places, hut it had more the APP
pearanee of having been purposeiy done to
avert suspicion from the proper source,
than the result of any search after val
uableS Two stats on the shutter ot the
window had also been broken, but 1t was
very evident that the work had been done
from the inside, and therefore was not
the result Of an effort to gain admission to
the house.
In the room where the bodies were
found one window was Spattered with
blood and the curtain had afterward been
Irt down over it. \ night cap,
turned wrong side out, was placed on
the head OF Mrs. MCWha, very evidently
after she had been murdered, ~ 1t covered
the wounds on her head and still had no
holes IN 1t. There were also evidences that
the killing had been done in the kitchen
in the rear and the bodies afterwards drag
ged into the sitting room and placed in the
position in which they were found.
THE CORONoR'S JURY.
Justice William NJ. Lee was early ac-
uuainted with the terrible crime, and at
once impanelled jury of inquest as fol-
lows. William Crawford, Milton ID. Crit
fifth. Thomas Campbell, James Campbell,
w =. Miller, William Brown, Frank Hind
man. DR.. Owens, William Roberts, ID. II.
Keapgy, James Wright and Jesse Cable.
Tne taking of evidence was ut once COM
menced. i'm view OF the bodies, which were
still living on the floor of the sitting room,
in the position in which they had first
been found.
THE WOUNDS.
The wounds OF both victims consisted
entirely of deep glsheS, while beneath the
flesh the skulls had been crushed in, rs by
blows from some powerful person dealt
with a heavy blunt instrument, and, from
appearances, one would judge they had
been struck down suddenly one after the
tother, and then, while lying upon the
floor. probably in dying condition, as any
/ one of the blows seemed enough tn cause
death. the murderer, standing over them,
dealt blow after blow until the heads OF
| the two women were beaten into Jelly.
/ He was determined to see that his helllSh
work was complete.
GRAVE SUSPICIOUS.
| There are indications that the murder
might have been committed rs early as yes
terday afternoon, for the blood on the win
dow and floors was dried up considerably,
L